Prime Minister on verge of triggering independence referendum say Greens
Theresa May will trigger an independence referendum in Scotland if she announces plans for a “hard Brexit” this morning say the Greens.
Media reports at the weekend suggest the Prime Minister will use the speech to reveal plans for taking the UK out of the single market, a move Ross Greer MSP says will confirm that the Westminster government “couldn’t care less” about Scotland.
The West of Scotland MSP also believes people in Scotland will not want to be part of the “angry, isolated Britain” that the Tories are planning.
Ross Greer MSP, the Scottish Greens’ external affairs spokesperson, said:
“A Hard Brexit will cost around eighty thousand jobs and a two thousand pound drop in the average income in Scotland. The reports that Theresa May will announce such a plan show that her Westminster government couldn’t care less about the best interests of those north of the border or how we actually voted. The angry, isolated Britain they clearly have in mind isn’t something I believe most people here want to be a part of.
“If these reports are true it is hard to see any other option than a referendum on Scottish independence, giving people a choice between self-government and this Hard Brexit disaster-in-waiting. Westminster clearly isn’t interested in compromise or a separate arrangement for each part of the UK which suits its interests and wishes. We need to put Scotland’s future in Scotland’s hands – it’s clearly not safe with the Tories.”